What is an SRC/IRB?

Scientific Review Committee (SRC): Any project that deals with human subjects, vertebrate animals, pathogenic agents, controlled substances or recombinant DNA must be approved by the MSEC's SRC. Institutions and schools may have their own SRC.

Institutional Review Board (IRB): An Institutional Review Board (IRB) is a committee that, according to federal regulations (45-CFR-46), must evaluate the potential physical and/or psychological risk of research involving human subjects.

Approval by an SRC/IRB must be done BEFORE a project is started. MSEC's SRC has final approval of ALL projects submitted to the Mercer Science and Engineering Fair.

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